Professor Norman Ratcliffe

Professor Norman Ratcliffe is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine; he has published over 200 books and research papers on immunology, cancer, influenza, tropical diseases and MRSA.

Motivated by the barrage of conflicting health advice in the media, five years ago Professor Ratcliffe started to thoroughly analyse the existing scientific evidence. His objective was to produce a comprehensive but easily accessible book on health, diet and fitness to help people of all different ages lead more healthy and fulfilling lives. The outcome of this five year project is the "It’s Your Life" series of books.

In "It's Your Life: End the confusion from inconsistent health advice" Professor Ratcliffe:

1Identifies harmful pesticides and additives in food and gives advice on how to avoid them; he emphasises the importance of removing such chemicals from the diets of babies, children and pregnant women.

2Details pesticide contamination rates in fruit, vegetables and other types of food using easily interpreted tables.

3Provides a summary table of the least chemically polluted foods.

4Outlines the total chemical load of the body and explains how these toxins originate from preservatives, colourants and sweeteners.

5Gives advice on reducing your body burden of chemicals.

6Lists which organic foods are most important to buy and explains why, in these financially challenged times, it is unnecessary to eat just organic foods.

7Solves the “Vitamin Dilemma” of whether “To Take Or Not To Take” which faces most people due to conflicting advice in the media.

8Shows that nearly 70% of people in the UK would benefit from taking vitamin and mineral supplements.

9Uniquely, recommends supplements for different life stages, from pregnancy to old age, and also for smokers, drinkers, diabetics etc.

10Provides evidence of the role of exercise, even walking, in reducing heart disease, cancer, diabetes and premature death.

11Explains how to begin exercising and how to choose the correct exercise/sport for your needs.

12Recognises that the gym is not for everyone and outlines alternative types of exercise.

13Uniquely, examines the effects of each type of exercise in terms of joint damage and cardiovascular function.

14Identifies optimal exercises for different ages and for avoiding frailty in old age.

15Gives clear summaries of basic facts for adopting a new healthy lifestyle.

16Gives reasons for weight gain at different times of life and how to avoid such increases without special diets.

18Explains “The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Fats” as well as the need for fibre in food.

“IT’S YOUR LIFE” IS A UNIQUE CONTRIBUTION SINCE:

It is for people ofall different ages, aiming to optimise health and fitness and maximise an active and independent lifestyle throughout life. It is not a part of the recent deluge of health and diet books or videos produced by B-class “celebrities” but has been written by a biomedical scientist of international repute.

You will not find in most books high impact illustrations emphasising important points in the text. For example, the cover illustrates the present-day frustration and confusion of the average consumer exposed to contradictory health and dietary advice.

You will not find in most bookson diet and exerciseclear summaries of basic facts for adopting a new health plan. Thus, for the many people with busy lives who may hate reading health books Chapter 1 (“Food, The Basic Diet”), Chapter 9 (“Exercise, Basic Introduction”) and other Chapters are designed for rapid reference, often to specific age-groups of people.

You will also not find in most other booksdescriptions of how many aspects of diet and exercise change at different times of life (Chapter 1) as well as reasons for weight gain as we age and advice as how to avoid this (Chapter 2, “Help! What Am I Eating?”).

You will also not find in most other books extensive tables for rapid identification of foods containing high levels of calories, saturated fats, salt and sugar (Chapter 2). Thus, information on over 300 different food groups can be extracted at a glance without the necessity of reading minute and confusing Supermarket Food Labels.

You will also not find in most books not only clearly tabulated facts about “The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Fats”, and “Fibre” but also appraisals of theAtkins and GI “Fad Diets” (Chapter 3).

You will also not find in other books details of the rates of pesticide contamination of fruit, vegetables and other types of food using easily interpreted tables (Chapter 4). A summary table is also included, for attaching to the refrigerator door or notice board, to identify the least chemically polluted foods.

You will also not find in other booksa list of organic foods that are the most important to buy (Chapter 4)and an explanation why, in these financially challenged times, it is unnecessary to eat just organic foods.

You will also not find in many other booksdetails of the potential impact on food safety of Food Additives, Preservatives and Colourants (Chapter 5) together with consideration of the total chemical loading of the body from all sources (Chapter 6, “The Cocktail Effect”). Possible interactions of chemicals accumulated from pesticides and additives in food, and from cosmetics and household sources, are also discussed, and advice is given on reducing the uptake of chemicalsfrom the environment.

You will also not find in other booksan understanding of the “Vitamin Dilemma” as “To Take Or Not To Take, That Is The Question” (Chapters 7 and 8) facing most people following conflicting advice in the media. Clear scientific analysis of the latest research shows that people require different supplements at different stages in their lives. Supplement recommendations are made for each stage from pregnancy to old age.

You will also not find in most other books an understanding of the “To Gym Or Not To Gym-That Is The Question” dilemma faced by many people beginning to exercise for the first time (Chapter 9). It introduces the basics and benefits of regular exercise, describes how to begin training in the gym, and provides an outline exercise programme (Chapter 10).

You will also not find in most other books details of “Alternative Types Of Exercise For Gym–Haters” (Chapter 11), with different sports and activities described together with the calories used and a table of the time taken with different sports to burn off highly calorific snacks. Uniquely, the effects of each type of exercise are presented in terms of joint damage and cardiovascular function, and advice on exercising at different ages is also included.

In summary, “IT’S YOUR LIFE”, presents the best advice available for optimising health and fitness in a manner designed to enlighten and engage the non-expert reader.

Professor Ratcliffe uses his blog to keep people informed of new scientific advances in health, diet and fitness as they emerge, and to enable people to comment on, and discuss, the "It’s Your Life" series of books.